Dubai’s energy demand rose by 5.5% in 2022

Strong performance in all the emirate's economic sectors is driving growth, says Dewa chief

Dewa's production capacity has increased to 14,517 megawatts of electricity and 490 million imperial gallons of desalinated water per day. Photo: Dewa

Energy demand in Dubai rose by about 5.5 per cent in 2022 from the previous year amid a broader economic recovery in the UAE.

Demand for electricity reached 53,180 gigawatt-hours last year, compared with 50,401 in 2021, the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority said in a statement on Wednesday.

The rise in demand reflects the strong performance of all economic sectors in Dubai, in addition to the continuous growth in population and the expansion in key activities, Saeed Al Tayer, chief executive of Dewa, said.

“We continue to raise the production capacity of electricity and water as well as increase the capacity and efficiency of the transmission and distribution networks,” said Mr Al Tayer.

“This is to keep pace with the growing demand for electricity and water as well as the future needs of customers, developers and businesses, while providing a convenient margin.”

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Dubai's economy expanded by 4.6 per cent on annual basis in the first nine months of last year, with wholesale and retail trade accounting for 24.1 per cent of its gross domestic product (GDP), according to the Dubai Statistics Centre data.

Business activity in the Dubai's non-oil private sector economy remained strong in December, boosted by a sharp increase in output as new orders climbed.

The emirate's seasonally-adjusted S&P Global purchasing managers' index reading in December edged higher to 55.2 from 54.9 in November, above the neutral 50 mark separating expansion from contraction.

Dubai has earmarked Dh40 billion ($10.9 billion) for investments in electricity and water projects over the next five years, which will focus on renewables, clean energy, electricity and water transmission, and distribution networks, to meet growing demand.

Dewa, the first Dubai entity to go public among the 10 state enterprises the government aims to list on the Dubai Financial Market, reported a 10 per cent jump in third-quarter net profit last year as revenue rose amid increased power demand.

Net profit attributable to the owners of the company for the three-month period to the end of September climbed to Dh3.17 billion. Revenue for the July-September period rose by 15 per cent to Dh8.56 billion.

In November, Dewa's subsidiary Emirates Central Cooling Systems Corporation (Empower) raised more than Dh2.6 billion through its initial public offering (IPO), which was 47 times oversubscribed.

The district cooling provider sold two billion shares, equivalent to 20 per cent of its share capital.

Dewa operates as a vertically integrated multi-utility. Its businesses include electricity generation, transmission and distribution, water desalination and district cooling.

Its production capacity has increased to 14,517 megawatts of electricity and 490 million imperial gallons of desalinated water per day, Mr Al Tayer said.

Dewa, which has been investing heavily in technology, said last month losses from electricity transmission and distribution have been reduced to 2.2 per cent while water network losses have been cut to 4.5 per cent.